Silver Linings Playbook (2012) - Review

I may have something wrong with me.  Some kind of mental illness.  Whether it’s depression or bipolar disorder, or one of those less popular ones that involves a heaping helping of anxiety and mood swings but none of the truly crazy stuff like schizophrenia.  Regardless, there’s something a little off in my head and it makes me sad and that’s okay sometimes.  Sometimes it’s less okay, but that’s neither here nor there.

This is a film about two messed up people finding love in the world.  That in itself is pretty sweet.  But hey, when you add in the fact that it’s J-Law and Bradley Cooper, well that’s even better!  I feel like this movie is actually kind of standard for such an Oscar-filled movie, seeing as it got eight nods, but at its core it’s just a beautiful romance with a dash of character study.

I’m not that familiar with David O. Russell’s work.  Three Kings is pretty good, I hated The Fighter, and I haven’t seen anything else he’s done.  I noticed that this retains some of the stark, open shots that the previous two films contained and it works in the film’s favor to showcase Pat’s (Cooper) illness as we see his illness as well as what triggers it.  The direction implies a lot of “unknown, outside world” which I feel integrates well into the two lead characters that are looking so inwardly in self-loathing.

 

Speaking of, Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper kill these roles completely and utterly.  If this movie doesn’t convince you that Cooper’s a fantastic leading man, then I don’t know what would.  And this is J-Law’s meatiest role to date, and she’s knocks it out of the park with a volatile yet vulnerable edge.

While there is a running sports theme that I can’t identify with, I can relate to the overall feeling of obsession.  Finding that thing that you feel comfortable with, that thing that keeps you grounded so you don’t burn the village down.  That’s the only thing that has really gotten me through rough patches, and I imagine it’s what will get me through those still to come.

For me, media is my escape.  Movies, TV shows, video games, music... I get lost in the sea of things that make me feel feelings.  Silver Linings Playbook is one of those things.  You made me feel feelings, damn it.